5 moral wisdom behind fasting

The last 10 days are loaded with spiritual activities in form of Tahajjud (vigil) and I'tikaaf (seclusion) and I hope we are bracing up to go for these two In shaa Allah.

So as we prepare for this, let us remind ourselves about some of the wisdom behind the month to which we have committed ourselves in the last 15 days.

When you ask a Muslim about the reasons why Allah commands us to fast, he would probably tell you that Allah wants us to be pious, righteous and obedient.

Fantastic! that is the main reason (to have taqwa). i.e. to fear Allah.

From this (taqwa), we tend to achieve many other things through fasting especially those things we dislike to do on moral ground but our craving hearts push us to do them.

ALSO READ: Can we just sit and examine how far Ramadan has taken us?

Now, let us look at some of the moral benefits of fasting.

Loyalty

Fasting makes us feel we are loyal to Allah. You know how it feels when you are fasting and the sun is excruciatingly hot, you feel like hiding behind the door and satisfy your longing dry throat with a very cold cup of water, but you remember your fasting is for Allah and he is watching you.

And then you ignore the thought of breaking the fast....You are a loyal servant of ALLAH. Aren't you?

Strengthening our willpower

The human heart can be very fickle. It could become inordinate when the man is not strong enough to restrain himself.

Fasting helps us to strengthen our willpower and determination. It makes the hearts clings to what is permissible and shuns what is not. Some people find telling lies as easy as breathing, but in Ramadan, they try as much as possible to avoid dishonesty.

Understanding the situation of the poor

It is easy to be told how the poor feel. It is very easy to think about their conditions, but many of us really don't know what it takes to live without basic necessities of life. No matter how hard we try, we can never understand what it means to live in penury.

Fasting makes us feel this pain for some days to understand what it means to have nothing.

It is even worse when you have food but can't touch it out of obedience. The moral of this is to give the poor when you have because you have been through their situation for a month. Allah has given you and you need to give others too to alleviate their suffering.

Honesty:

The one who fasts and then breaks the fast for no reason breaches his pledge with Allah.

Fasting increases our sense of honesty for even a chronic liar would protect his fast by not lying while fasting.

So, avoiding anything that would make us break the fast even when nobody sees us is tantamount to being honest with Allah and ourselves. And who does not know honesty pays?

Promotion of love and brotherhood:

Ramadan encourages sharing of gifts, foods and so on. This according to the prophet increases love and good neighbourliness.

One act of kindness spreads from one person to a family. The family extend some good gestures to their neighbours and the neighbours to the entire community. This is how building a peaceful world starts.

There are so many other wisdom behind fasting such as its medical and spiritual advantages. The aforementioned point may pass for sociological benefits of fasting because they all stem from sociological points of view.

So dear Muslims, let us observe Ramadan as we ought to and let the lessons we learn from it remain useful for us even after Ramadan. Assalaamu Alaykum.